Jack Steel worked in a garage, a factory, a mortuary and an operating theatre before joining the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm as a pilot. He served for over twenty years, including active service during the Falklands War. As a senior officer, he became involved in intelligence gathering and dissemination, in covert operations in places like Yemen, and on projects classified above Top Secret. After leaving the service, he ran his own company in his adopted home of Andorra for several years before becoming a professional author. He now divides his time between writing and lecturing, principally on ships of the major cruise lines, including Cunard.